Sometimes when at clients premises, I have to use a series of rescue/installation discs to resolve an issue.

Sometimes, it can take quite a few hours to sort out the multiple problems people allow to accumulate on their computer before seeking professional help. A lot of which is helped along by the 'bar room fixers' who know absolutely sod all in real terms about much at all.

They don't know what the real problem is because they've not seen it and clients rarely know how to describe the problem fully anyway - not that there's anything wrong with that, I don't expect it.

The client then goes and mis-follows the wrong advice they've been given and make an even bigger dogs breakfast of the whole thing and after they've totally screwed their computer, they call me.

Now to the point of my rant.

After I've spent hours sorting out the cock-up, I put my things back in my bag (or so I think) and head off home. Some days, or even weeks, later I open my bag looking for the discs to find that I've accidentally left at my clients.

The annoying thing is the client, who now has a full set of service and recovery discs that I've paid for, and doesn't have a clue in hell how to use them, hasn't had the decency to ring me and let me know I've left them. This has happened every time I've done it.

I now have to go through the time and expense of getting a new set of dics together.

ONE THING YOU GET FROM ME IS HONESTY, IF YOU CAN'T RETURN THE FAVOUR THEN YOU DON'T DESERVE THE SERVICES I OFFER.

​I will work out where I left them and that person will have a heavy bill next time they call me!

It just goes to show, there's a lot of really dishonest immigrants out there.

I'm getting more and more calls from people asking me to supply them with 20M internet.

Why?

Because they've bought one of these stupid IPTV boxes and it doesn't work on their current internet providers 6M connection.

More and more people are falling for the IPTV box scam. I've been asked by one of the 'budget' phone suppliers to sell their products including ................. IPTV boxes.

Guess what I told them to do with the boxes. Yep, stick 'em where the sun don't shine. They don't believe me when I tell them they'll never work until they sort out the internet and the contention ratios (how many people who share an internet connection at the exchange) but my concerns are proving to be fact.

Current contention ratios are such that you share your 6M with 49 other people for domestic clients and 24 others on a business connection (that's why business internet costs a lot more).

When there's only a few of you streaming mountains of data through your IPTV boxes, it'll just about cope but as those numbers increase, the system will either collapse or your internet provider will put the brakes on your streaming, which in turn means your IPTV boxes won't work.

Because the ex-pat fraternity are so obsessed with watching TV, hundreds of scammers have sprung up selling IPTV boxes for obscene amounts because they know you're going to pay it.

It costs them money to pay for servers to keep your boxes running and it takes a bit of technical know-how to set them up. These people have neither. They pay the deposit for the server, sell loads of boxes (making nearly €100 a box) then disappear and move on to the next town.

One hour watching live TV through the internet consumes around 700Mb of data - enough to supply an 'average' household for at least a week.

Data has to be paid for by somebody. Your internet provider sets their systems and prices based on the 'average' household. As more and more of you become 'abnormal' users, only two things can happen. Their network collapses and/or the price goes up.

What I see to be one of the biggest issues here in Spain is the ex-pat communities EXPECT to get the services they would get in their home countries at the same level of pricing. Wake up, it aint ever going to happen. The majority of Spanish networks were never designed to be used as they are now and upgrading them costs many many millions.

This is Spain, stop expecting something for nothing, accept that legitimate traders have small fortunes to pay in taxes and other fees and have all sorts of hoops to jump through to stay legal. I'm not suggesting that paying €600 for €200 worth of satellite TV kit is acceptable, what I am saying is that, as with all things in life, you need to carry out due diligence checks.

Use your legal, registered traders as you have recourse if they sell you a pup. All these illegal IPTV scammers don't give a fig once they've got your money. You can't get a refund and you'll never find them once they've moved on as they use false details.

Well, just to show how gullible we all are (well, not me), I remember reading a story not long back in the Costa TV Times and it went something like this.

Somebody bought one of these obscenely overpriced IPTV boxes from a company called UK TV Solutions in Benalmadina on the Costa del Crime, sorry, Costa del Sol.

It worked OK for about week or so and then stopped - ho hum, no surprise there then. This is where the fun starts.

They tried contacting the company and guess what - no answer. Phone, email - the well was dry, that is until they were threatened with exposure on various social media websites.

Promises were then made that an engineer would call to sort out the problem. This incident was last year and they're still waiting.

What I find astonishing is that people actually buy blind over the internet from a company advertising with a Spanish address, a phone number in Bulgaria and a hotmail email account. Ding dong - alarm bells ringing.

So, if you've got something like €240 burning a hole in your pocket, you too can give it to uktvsolutions.com, also known as homeserve.es and get a worthless piece of junk and abuse in return. Absolutely a good deal.

I have to go to the UK next week so will be unavailable except for remote service or advice.

I will be away from Monday 23rd June to Friday 27th inclusive.

Thank you for your understanding.

Clive

Some of you may have seen a previous article about Airbox Spain and might wonder what's happened to it. I'll tell you.

Following a pleasant chat to clear the air with the guys at Airbox, I decided to remove in its' entirety the article relating to the bad service of that company and the poor performance of its' product. I wasn't asked to, forced to or otherwise induced to.It must be stressed that my only experience of the Airbox product was through our mutual client who was totally dissatisfied with it, and that experience may, or may not be the norm. I am not in a position to say one way or the other because I just don't know. I can only form my own opinion of what I saw.

The points that really concern me about all of this are that they never once asked about, nor made mention of, our mutual customer to see if there was anything they could do to resolve that persons problems and never addressed the points mentioned but preferred to make 'sarcastic' (their word) comments about me and my business. Says it all really.

Airbox assure me that theirs is a solid and reliable product worth every cent of €279 for 12 months followed by a monthly subscription.

They also assure me that they developed the system which they are charging you for, that broadcasts the paid for premium content over the internet to your Airbox which is totally illegal without the content owners permission. Premium content owners never give their permission for this to anyone.

That opportunity has now passed and I hope this is my last diatribe on the airbox product as I feel everything has been said that can be said at this time.

What I will tell you all about though, is that if you want something that performs a similar (not same) function to airbox for a lot less, is that you mosey on over here - click here.

Here you can get all the help you need to set up your own Raspberry Pi IPTV box and get TV, sports and movie channels with no subscription. The only outlay you will have is for the Raspberry Pi and the bits to get it going which amounts to roughly €60 which is over €200 saving for your first year alone.

Links to all the free software and advice and guidance in how to put it it all together are provided by knowledgeable and helpful people who have already done it themselves and are happy to share their experiences with you. The guys over there will even source the equipment for you.

Even the non-techies are building their own IPTV boxes!!

So the bottom line is;

Currently, you can pay Airbox Spain €279 for your first year then pay them a monthly subscription.ORYou can pay €60 with NO subscription.

You pays your money and makes your choice but just remember one really really really important point. Anyone streaming premium channels over the internet and then charging you for it is acting illegally because they do not have permission from the content provider to do that.

It is rebroadcasting and rebroadcasting without the content owners permission is always illegal and internet servers are an easy target for the broadcast companies to find, shut down and fine. Just so you know.

Author

My name is Clive Gray, using the trading style Clive Gray Computers. I'll be jotting down thoughts and snippets as time permits.I am not responsible for the content of replies posted in response to my articles, they are the views of the poster and last time I checked, we still have the right of free speech.When replying to a post, please ensure it's relevant to the subject or it may be moved or deleted.Thank you.